How I Rid My Life of Negativity

Today, I am going to tell you how I rid my life of negativity and replaced them with warm positive thoughts by using the ” 5-Minute Journal” from Intelligent Change.

Why I Tried the 5 Minute Journal

I have been in a struggling with negative thoughts most of this year. Which has impacted my motivation and caused me not to complete even the simplest of tasks. I realized that I needed to do something to change my negative behavior, or I would continue down this destructive path.  So, while researching different productivity products I came across the 5 Minute Journal and thought that this might be the solution I was looking for. I figured I would give it one week and see what, if any, impact it had on my life.

I dislike journaling.

I must be honest, I just dislike journaling.  I have tried it on and off over the years and just never could make it a habit.  But what drew me to this journal was that it is not really journaling.  At least not the way most people think about journaling.  In fact, it even states on the website that this journal is for people that don’t like to write in journals.  So, what makes this journal different.  Well, basically the journal asks you the same questions each day.  While I find this repetitive if you really think about each question, you will find that you answer the questions differently based upon how you are feeling that day. 

5 Minute Journals Goal

The journal’s goal is for you to think positively first thing in the morning and again last thing in the evening.  For instance, the first question you will answer every morning is “What are you grateful for?”  Now answer me in the comments below your answer to that question.   Don’t worry, I will wait for you.  Have you finished writing your response?  Now that that is done let’s continue.

After using this 5 Minute Journal for three weeks I can tell you that my answers are not the same every day.  They are different depending on my feelings and my mood.  However, the one thing that my answers all have in common is that they are always positive answers. 

Why I LOVE the 5 MINUTE JOURNAL?

So, I am going to give you my five reasons why you will love the 5 Minute Journal.

  1.  It helps me start and end my day in a positive mindset.
  2. It takes less than 5 minutes to do each day
  3. I am happier now than I was before I started writing in this journal.
  4. It is built on proven psychology.
  5. It is very simple to do.

How It Works

The reason why Intelligent Change wants you to write in the journal first thing in the morning and last thing in the evening is to influence your day.  You will answer three things each morning.  They are:

  1. I am grateful for….
  2. What would make today great?
  3. Daily affirmation.

So, when answering what you are grateful for today you have room for three responses.  I use all three lines but have found that I usually respond with one-word answers.  For example, in today’s response to “I am grateful for…”. I responded with sleep, life, and family.

For the second question.  What would make today great? I responded with:

  1.  Finish the blog and video editing.
  2. Upload blog, podcast, and video.
  3. Finalize the thumbnail for latest video.

For me, I feel like I use the second question as a mini to-do list.  The first item is my Most Important Task and the second and third items are my additional tasks.  I am not sure if Intelligent Change planned on this happening or not.  But it is how I use the journal.  Now, I also have Intelligent Change’s Productivity Planner and it is a repeating part of what I put in my planner.  I guess it is not a bad thing, but I am thinking that maybe I need to revise how I think about that question.  Let me know in the comments your thoughts about that.  Or better yet, how would you respond to what would make today great?

Daily Affirmation

The last entry for the morning is my Daily affirmation.  My daily affirmation is and will be the same until I feel I have driven those pesky negative thoughts away.  My affirmation is simple.  “Stay Positive.”  According to Intelligent Change your daily affirmation is a simple statement that defines you as you want to be.

Evening Tasks Required By the 5-Minute Journal

Now the journal has two things that it wants you to respond to every evening.  The first is list a couple of highlights from your day.  Since I have started using this journal my highlights are all positive response.  Even if I did not get my most important task completed, I still end up responding in a positive way.  Now, I hate to admit this but before I started this journal if someone asked me that same thing.  My response would not have been positive.  For example, one of my entries was “I did not get as much editing done as I like but overall, a more productive day.”

Weekly Challenges Inside the 5-Minute Journal

The weekly challenges will encourage you to take actions beyond your comfort zone.  This is where real growth happens.  This is given on a random day of the week instead of your daily quote. 

The weekly challenge in the book is to help you discover your fears and treat them as friends to help you grow.

How Well Did the 5-Minute Journal Work for Me?

I have been using the 5-Minute Journal for over three weeks now and will continue to do so.  I really like how my mindset has changed. I still have negative thoughts every now and then but nothing like I had before.  The biggest thing that I have noticed is that when negative things happen, they do not have a lasting effect on my day.  Before using this journal anything negative would have caused my how day to be negative.

For instance, my Internet provider has been upgrading my service and for the last week the Internet has been down for three days.  That has put me behind in my video production schedule.  A lot of the services that I use in video production require Internet access.  So, when the Internet is down it impacts me a lot.  Also, my business phone service is provided through the Internet so that was also impacted.  Thankfully, my cellphone service does not depend on my home Internet.

Let me know in the comments below if you have tried this technique and if it worked for you.  Until next time, please be safe. You can find more blog articles here.